Process of making steel.



s me- ALvAc. DINKEY, or PITTSBURGH, rnunsrnvanra PROCESS OF MAKING STEEL.

15o Drawing. Application filed August 7,

i To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALVA C. DINKEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburgh, inthe county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes of Making Steel, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the manufacture of steel and while not restricted to such uses more particularly relates to the manufacture of steel such as acid Bessemer steel in which the phosphorus must be below a specified limit.

The available supply of low phosphorus or Bessemer ores is decreasing with a corresponding increase in the cost thereof, which is one'reason for the decrease in the production of acid Bessemer steel. Making steel by the open hearth processrequires much more time and is more expensive than by the acid Bessemer process.

In one known process of making steel, it has been the practice to first blow the molten pig iron in an acid Bessemer converter, in

order to remove the silicon as far as pos sible, carbon also being removed to the desired extent in this operation. The partially refined metal is then transferred to an open hearth furnace, pig iron or steel or iron scrap being added when necessary or desirable and the charge or heat of metal is treated in the usual manner to reduce or substantially eliminate the phosphorus and produce steel of the desired composition.

The primary obj c of my invention is to provide a process or ".iaking low phosphorus steel from iron containing phosphorus above the permissible or specified limit, by which the cost of manufacture is reduced, difficulties heretofore experienced in making the steel are avoided, and steel of substantially uniform composition or equality is quickly and cheaply obtained.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel method of making steel whereby low phosphorus steel is easily and. cheaply made from high phosphorus iron and the silicon necessary to complete the refining operation is provided in a cheap and economical manner.

Still further objects of my invention will become apparent as the invention is more fully described hereinafter and is specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention consists in partially refin- Specification of Letters Patent.

of the charge,

Patented Dec. 7,191.5. 1914. Serial No. 855,575.

ing iron in a furnace, basic-materials being used and the iron being maintained at a relatively low temperature in this step of the operation, to effect the removal of phosphorus without, necessarily, a material reduction in carbon, mixing known quantities of the partly refined metal and of high phosphorus and preferably high silicon metal and treating the so formed heat of mixed metals in an acid Bessemer converter to complete the refining operation and obtain a steel of the required phosphorus content.

The invention still further consists in preparing and storing quantities of 10W phosphorus metal in readiness for use by mixing with suitable proportions of high phosphorus iron, in making heats of metal of known quantity and composition for further treatment in the acid Bessemer converter.

The invention still further consistsin' providing a process whereby successive heats of Bessemer steel of varying phosphorus content may be made from pig iron containing above apermissible limit in an acid Bessemer converter.

In the practice of my invention I charge into the furnace a quantity of limestone and ore or other oxid of iron, the limestone amounting to about five per cent. and the ore or oxid to about 15 to 20 per cent. by weight of the metal charged. The amounts of limestone and ore may be varied considerably according to the composition of the iron used and the degree of refining desired. For example, the limestone may be omitted entirely, and basic additions other than ore may be used. These materials are heated until they are at, say. a red heat, or are pasty and even-fused, depending upon their nature. The charge condition, is then poured into the furnace, preferably as rapidly and at as nearly one time as possible. This causes an active reaction and a rapid production of basic slag, and the materials being at a comparatively low temperature, the iron oxid oxidizes the phosphorus, silicon and manganese in the pig iron with extreme rapidity and at the same time oxidizes a slight portion of the carbon. At the end of a time interval, of say about one hour more or less, depending upon the method of operation and the size the phosphorus will have been substantially eliminated, that is to say, reduced to about 10 per cent. of its origina of phosphorus,-

of pig iron, in a molten more tons), a

1 of known the refining process.

cessive heats of steel of Va content. The slag formed by the reactions above stated i I phosphorus the slag may be removed at a single operation either during or at the completion of It is to be understood that it need not necessarily be removed until the end of the process. The furnace is then tapped and the partlyrefined metal removed therefrom is transferred to a mixer or storage vessel. The iron will be treated in the prelim nary furnace preferably in about 50 to 100 ton lots and as the storage vessel will have a much greater capacity, (say 500 or .arge quantity of partly refined or seminished metal can be stored therein.

In some cases the partly refined meta-l, when placed in the storage vessel will be mixed therein with phorus pig iron, so that the tities withdrawn from time up a h average phosphorus content below the required limit. ther-cases the partly remeasured quanknown, in taking a le proportions 1n or suitfrom each vessel econverter, heats weight and having a low phosphoruscontent will be obtained, so that suc- 1 m composition,

heretofore diflicul-tor impossible to make in a Bessemer converter, will be readily obtained. A c metal, when one known quantities of metal forming a heat for th own in the usual manner to complete the removal of the silicon and carbon, ferro-silicon being added when necessary or desirable to the heat in the converter. The lown steel is deoxidized and is recarbonized in the usual manner and is then poured into ingot molds ance with the usual practice.

he advantages of my invention will be untreated high phosf pended claims.

apparent to the skilled steel maker. 1t entitles and known composltions, mixtures of metal having varying percentages of phos-- phorus arereadily obtained tosuit the particular requirements desired and the mixed 1ron is made into process, which, as is well known, is still the cheapest known process of making steel.

Modifications in the steps of the process may be made without departing from my invention. The storage vessels may be dispensed with, or may be employed in partly refining the metal. The metals may be mixed in any known manner. hearth furnace may be employed in place of the cla1m: 1. The roces's'ofmaking steel which consistsin the partly refined'm'etahmixing the partly silicon pig iron and then bessemerizing heats of the mixed metals inf'an acid converter; substantially as described.

heproce'ss of makingsteel which consists dephosphorlzing pig iron, making additlons of silicon and then bessemerizing heats of the partly refined ironin an acid converter; substantially as. described.

he process of making steel which con sists in treating high phosphorus to remove phosphorus therefrom,

own quantities of the dephosphorized iron and of high phosphorus pig iron to form a heat and then bessemerizing the mixed metal in an acid converter.

he process of making steel which con- 11 testimony whereof, I have hereimtoset LITTLE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner or i'atents,

' Washington, D. C. 

